Shaman King: Another Story
by kitty-krazy04
Summary: Two Shamans on their way to the tournament, join forces unknowingly with the most powerful Shaman in the world. When they are sent on a mission to destroy their own friends, loyalty to them and Hao is tested. Is it their destiny to fight or fall? OC's!
1. Tale of the Neko and Usagi: Part I

Thousands of stars lit the skies in the outskirts of America, wrapped around it like a comfort blanket. It was an icy cold winters night. Spring was certainly on it's way, but it had been cold for so long that hope had been lost long ago. This was indeed the coldest winter America had ever had to face.

Two teenage girls were sat beside a dirt road, waiting for something that seemed would never come. It was incredibly eery. Silence was all that they could hear. The girls were shivering violently underneath their thin coats. One of them was rather pale, her skin glowed in the darkness. Her checkered black and red jacket clinged to her, but it wasn't enough to fight the freezing cold. The fluffy hat she was wearing covered her ears, her dark red side fringe poked out from under the front of it. She looked up at the stars, her kohl lined eyes were a shimmering hazel color, with a tint of green around the edges. She wore plain blue jeans and black lace up boots that came up to her knees. She was holding a flask of hot chocolate, taking little sips every so often. Her name was Vicky. A sigh came from her mouth, which made a white cloud and she looked over to her companion. The other girl sat ontop of her numb hands, trying to bring the feeling back. She wasn't wearing a hat, but her long dark brown hair flew around her face in the blustery wind. Her fringe shaped around her face. She looked over to her friend. Her eyes were a hypnotising dark seal brown color, almost black. Her thin jacket was black and purple, with rabbit ears dangling from the hood. She wore just simple black jeans and red Dr. Martin boots. Kelly was the name that belong to her.

"I d-don't think I can h-h-handle it anymore, I want to just d-die here on the s-s-s-spot." Vicky spoke, stuttering almost every word due to how absolutely freezing she was.

"W-w-we have to s-stay here." Kelly stuttered back, giving Vicky a serious look.

They were waiting for a man named Hao Asakura.

* * *

><p><strong>2 Days Earlier:<strong>

"Okay so..." Vicky muttered to herself, holding a map of Tokyo in both hands. Vicky and Kelly stood in the middle of the dirt track. They had come across two winding dirt paths facing each other in opposite directions.

"Are we lost?" Kelly asked her best friend, looking doubtful.

"Hmm..."

"What does 'hmm' mean? Just admit it, we're lost." Kelly told her, dropping her bags of belongings on the floor.

"We're... not lost, well we weren't until we got to here." Vicky said, pointing to the spot on the map and then looking at each of the dirt paths. They wasn't on vacation. They were simply two ordinary Shaman's on the way to the Shaman Tournament. Well, it was_ that_ ordinary. Even though it was over a year until the tournament officially started, they were making sure they knew where exactly to go. Training was a sure thing, so they were planning on finding a professional trainer to help them become the best.

"Great." Kelly muttered, face palming. Kelly was usually the positive thinker, but for some reason, she wasn't really feeling it lately. Her strange dreams kept her awake most nights. Dreams that she hadn't even told Vicky about. She knew how much of a worrier Vicky was, so she didn't want to upset her.

"Should we just pick a random road and just go with it?" Vicky suggested, looking towards the left. "Boy, where's the Chesire Cat when you need him."

"I wouldn't go left if I were you." A voice called behind them. They both spun round. There were a group of people walking towards them.

"Oh, err... you're heading to Patch Village too then?" Vicky asked them, feeling a little awkward. First impressions and new people weren't her thing, so she suprised herself when she started talking to them.

One of them nodded, smiling widely. "Yep." _He must of been the dude that spoke first then..._ Vicky thought, as the image of him started to save in her brain. His eyes were brown, he had long brown hair tied up in a ponytail, a couple of bangs hanging from both sides of his face along with orange headphones behind his ears. His clothes were a black sleeveless top with orange interieor and trousers to match, which had a orange case on the leg and black sandals. _Wow, he likes orange then._

"Such divine creatures!" Someone cried. A quite tall man with a large quiff as his hairdo ran over to Vicky and Kelly, he took both their hands in his and kissed them. "So lovely to meet you." Vicky quickly took her hand back, looking disturbed. Kelly looked on at him, bewildered. The man didn't notice their expressions and walk back to his friends, with a dreamy look on his face.

"Sorry guys." The orange lover said, sweatdropping.

"That's Ryu for you." Spoke a voice at the boy's feet. Vicky almost fell over with shock. A tiny boy with a mop of hair, no bigger than her ankle was standing there, looking up at them both. Vicky coughed, trying to disguise the fit of laughter that was dying to be released.

"Yoh." The girl next to him said impatiently, her arms folded. The red bandana she was wearing around her head fluttering in the cold breeze, along with her dark blonde hair which came to her shoulders. Her eyes were as black at the above the knee dress she was wearing. There were long beads around her neck and there were red sandals on her feet.

"Aww, come on Anna, let them come with us?" The boy named Yoh pleaded.

"It's cool, we're fine. We don't wanna intrude." Kelly piped up, waving her hands at them.

"You heard them, Yoh. Come on." Anna said coldly. Yoh bowed his head, looked up at Vicky and Kelly with a weak smile and shrugged at them, looking guilty. The girls smiled sadly as they started to walk away.

Vicky looked at the other people who were with them. A boy almost as small as Kelly walked past had a strange tongari hairstyle. It was purple. He wore a long black coat and a yellow scarf that hid his nose and mouth. He stared at her. His golden eyes glaring right through her. Vicky swallowed and focused on the next boy that walked past. He was quite taller, lanky even. He wore a white and blue windrunner, shorts and trainers. His spikey light blue hair was kept back by a headband. He was a lot easier on the eyes, Vicky felt relaxed as she looked into his beautiful dark eyes...

Vicky suddenly felt a slight pain in her arm and jumped. Kelly had pinched her.

"God, you totally have the hots for him!" She hissed. The blue haired boy slid past them, giving them a puzzled look. Vicky wasn't sure if he heard Kelly or not.

"I do not, I was looking at his outfit. Shorts, in this weather? Seriously?" Vicky muttered, rubbing her sore arm. She watched as the Shamans headed up the right side of the dirt path.

"Yeah, yeah, change the subject." Kelly said, rolling her eyes.

"Hey! You can talk, I saw you take a little peek at that pointy headed guys butt!"

"I DID NOT!" Kelly yelled, turning a deep crimson.

"Chill! I was just kidding, why've you gone so red?" Vicky asked, now dying of laughter at Kelly's face.

* * *

><p>A few hours past, and the girls were on the road towards their destination. It felt like they were on the dirt path forever. They couldn't see Yoh and the others in the distance anymore. Either they were very fast, or the girls were just really slow. Kelly said the first option. It was getting dark, which meant it was getting colder. Vicky squinted and saw something coming up ahead.<p>

"What's this... looks like someones sitting on that huge boulder."

"Maybe he's hitching a ride?" Kelly suggested, squinting too.

"How many vehicles have you seen so far?"

"...None." Kelly answered, giggling nervously. They were getting closer and closer now, so they could make out who it was. It was another boy, this time in a white poncho. His hair was long and brown. Vicky found his face very familiar.

"Isn't that Yoh?" Kelly pointed out.

Vicky shook her head. "No... it can't be. His hair was shorter than his."

"They look so alike." It wasn't because of him looking very much like Yoh, but the fact that she had seen him somewhere before. Somewhere... not in reality.

"Hello, ladies." He spoke, as they finally got in speaking distance with him. Vicky and Kelly exchanged looks. He even sounded like Yoh from what they could remember earlier. "I sensed your presence." He added. His long, shiny hair made him very attractive. He jumped from the boulder, landing on his feet like a professional in front of them. He was wearing red lego sandals. Kelly stared at them in awe for a few minutes.

"I've been gathering a few people to join my... family," Hao continued, "You two are very powerful, very powerful." Suprised flooded both the girls faces.

"Really?" Vicky asked him, her eyes full of happiness.

"Yes. Will you join me?"

"Who are you exactly?" Kelly asked him, not looking as happy as Vicky. _There was something going on here, what's his game?_

"My name, is Hao. Hao Asakura."

"Oh." They both said bluntly, looking non the wiser.

"Well, why do you want us? Surely there's Shaman's out there who are way more powerful than us."

"I haven't seen any so far." Hao told them, with a smile. "What are you're names?"

"Vicky."

"Kelly."

"Well, Vicky and Kelly. I see you're all alone here, in a foreign country with only each other to count on. I have a group of followers who would love to welcome you to our little family. I know you're going to enter the tournament... I could train you to be the best." Hao explained.

"Sure." Vicky replied quickly. Then added, "Do we get ponchos too?" She then felt a strong tug from Kelly, who pulled her arm and dragged her out of Hao's hearing.

"What on earth are you doing?" She hissed, making sure it was still in a whisper.

"Why can't we join him? I mean, he seems nice, friendly, hot...-"

"What if something bad happens and we're in the middle of it? I don't want any trouble. We've both had enough of that to last us a lifetime. Please, can we just decline this?" Kelly asked her, sounding desperately. Vicky sighed deeply, looking at the floor.

"Okay."

Kelly gave her a quick hug and they turned back to Hao, who was still waiting there patiently and smiling.

"Uhm, sorry Hao... but we're gonna have to pass." Vicky told him. There was a long pause. Hao wasn't smiling anymore.

"You see, I don't take no for an answer." He said in a low voice. He raised his arm up and clicked his fingers. There was a suddenly hot sensation in the air, causing their hair to fly in every direction. Something was appearing out of nowhere behind Hao. Vicky and Kelly looked up wide eyed and saw a huge red monster-like figure standing at least 50 feet tall. Vicky felt the urge to scream, but she couldn't get any words out. She looked over at Kelly who looked like she felt the same.

"Join me now, Shamans, or perish." Hao said coldly, the beast above him leering over at them.

Vicky closed her eyes, held out her hands in front of her and yelled, "OVERSO-!"

"Vicky! You can't fight him, you know he's too strong." Kelly warned her, grabbing her before she could oversoul properly.

"I can try."

"No, I won't let you... do it alone." Kelly added, reaching out for her weapon in her pocket.

"You fools." Hao laughed. He clicked his fingers again and the red demon reached down and grabbed them both, each in his gigantic claws. They both screamed and struggled but it was no use. It was too strong. There was no escape now.

"Join me now, or Spirit of Fire will devour you. I'd hate to see such power go to waste, but he'll be satified." Hao told them, smiling up at his Spirit.

"ALRIGHT!" Vicky screamed, in pain. Her whole body was being crushed by the monster. She noticed from the corner of her eye that Kelly had passed out.

"KELLY!"

"She'll be fine. I want you both to stay here. If you run, I will catch you. If you hide, I will find you. Be warned." Hao said to her. The last thing Vicky saw was being placed back onto the ground, then she blacked out.

* * *

><p>"W-what the..." Vicky slowly rose up from the ground, hold her spinning head. Hao and his 'Spirit of Fire' were nowhere to be seen. Maybe it was all a dream? She suddenly remembered Kelly, who was lying beside her. She looked over and saw Kelly staring up at the black sky.<p>

"It wasn't a dream." Kelly whispered, as if she'd just read Vicky's mind. Vicky's heart started pounding.

"He told us to stay here."

"Forget it. I'm not staying around for that lunatic, no matter how good looking he is." Kelly told her, getting up onto her feet.

"Kell... he threatened us. He said... he said..." Vicky explained to Kelly what he had said to her before she passed out. Kelly shivered, but it wasn't just because of how cold it was.

"What are we gonna do?"

"We'll have to do it. We have no choice. He could kill us, he could kill our families. We have to join him." Vicky said, chewing on her nails. "All we have to do, is wait."

* * *

><p><strong>Present Day:<strong>

Snow started to fall where the two teenage girls were sitting. Whilst waiting for Hao, they had fallen to sleep. Kelly's eyes fluttered open, welcomed by the site of a sight that pleased her, even at her darkest hours. She gave a small smile. Snow was her favorite kind of weather, if only she had the strength to get up. She was completely numb, frozen solid it seemed. Then, after a moment of what she imagined was bliss, her recent troubled thoughts came back to her._ Why did they go right? Why did they have to listen to those group of people telling them to go not go left? Why couldn't they just have gotten lost and all would be the same as usual? Why did it have to be them?_ So many questions loomed in her mind. _There was something not right about Hao, that's for sure. Threatening someone to join his family? Did he treat his own family and friends like that? Maybe he was just joking. Sick joke to pull on someone._

Drifting in deep thought, she didn't realise there was someone standing in front of them. It was a girl this time. An extremely pale girl with long straight jet black hair down to her back and bright orange eyes. They narrowed and looked down at Kelly. She wasn't smiling, and she didn't look very welcoming. Her clothes were just a white Chinese robe with a red dragon at the bottom, black leggings and black dolly shoes.

"Are you Kelly?" She asked, her tone not friendly.

"Yeah... you are?" Kelly asked, putting on the same tone as the girl.

"Domino."

Kelly smirked.

"Something amusing you about my name? It's not my real name, peasant." Domino snarled, looking at Kelly as if she really was a dirty homeless peasant.

"So, Domino." Kelly began, biting her lip to stop her from smirking again. "What brings you to the lower class?"

"Funny. I've been sent here by Hao, although, he must be insane to let you join us."

"Believe me, we didn't have a choice."

Domino gave a small, evil laugh. "I thought as much. Wake your friend up, I don't want to be wasting anymore of my Hao's precious time."

Kelly raised an eyebrow, _I guess she'd do anything for him then. Poor sap. Oh, and Domino. _Kelly started smiling to herself.

"Are you deaf? I said wake her up!" Domino snapped, kicking Vicky in the leg.

"WAH?" Vicky cried, falling backwards.

"Hurry the hell _up_." Domino hissed.

"Who the fudge are you?" Vicky asked, jumping up onto her feet a little too fast and hurting her sore leg. Kelly joined her.

"Hao's secret admirer." Kelly muttered to her, making Domino get even more angry.

"Enough of the whispering! Hurry up and get a move on. I haven't got all day."

* * *

><p><strong>A:N - RIGHT! So, I have re-wrote my Shaman King story countless times, and I've finally decided to scrap 'Home Sweet Home' because in all honesty, it was going nowhere. This one now has more of a plot to it now (It's the same jist, so don't worry). Enjoy! I hope people aren't too disappointed about my other story being deleted. <strong>**Neko and Usagi mean cat and rabbit btw. I'm the cat, Kelly's the rabbit! I couldn't be bothered to add and explain it in the story. If you're Japanese and reading it then you should know anyway ;) xxx**


	2. Tale of the Neko and Usagi: Part II

Somewhere in the North, Yoh and the gang weren't too far arriving at Dobie village. Much to Anna's disagreement, she finally gave in and let them set a camp up to rest for the night. Some of them couldn't handle staying up for very much longer and decided to hit the hay early, others such as Yoh, Horo, Ren and Ryu sat around the flames of the camp fire. Horo scooted closer to Ren, who was in deep thought.

"Ren?"

"What?" Ren snapped, opening one eye. His thoughts were far away now that Horo was here. He sighed. It was never a moments peace when he was around. Stupid Hedgehog.

"I was thinking..."

"Did it hurt?" Ren asked him, teasing. He stopped smirking when he saw Horo's stern look.

"Dude, those girls we saw earlier..." Horo continued. Ren's ears pricked up. _Maybe he's been thinking the same as me? _He wondered. _Could it be an actually miracle, me and Horo finally on the same wave length?_

"...Do you think they had the hots for me?"

Ren face planted the floor. _Of course it wasn't going to happen, Horo is an empty headed sorry excuse for a Shaman. Oh what was I thinking?_

"I mean, one of the girls was just like staring at me for ages. She was cute actually so I didn't mind that much..."

Ren huffed and put his hands over his ears, trying to drain out Horo's unessassary ramblings. The only person who seemed to be listening was Ryu, because he perved over the girls too. He looked over at Yoh and he had his headphones in, naturally. He kinda wished he had a pair now, they were definately helpful. This was going to be a long, long night.

* * *

><p>"Hao." Domino said softly, as she approched him with Vicky and Kelly standing a few metres behind her. Hao was sitting on his own with a medium-sized flame flickering in front of him, It's orange light reflecting off his face.<p>

"Where are the others?" Domino asked, looking around. Hao stood up.

"They're gone."

Domino's face dropped and her eyes widened. "W-what?"

"Dead." Hao told her, without a hint of sadness or trouble in his eyes.

"No..."

"They were destroyed."

"Yoh?" Domino asked with an angry voice, clenching her fists.

"It wasn't him, Domino. I did it." Hao said simply, as if it was completely normal. "They betrayed me."

Domino looked down, unable to look at him. They were her only friends.

"Don't worry, we have a lot more followers out there." Hao told her, seeing her distraught expression. Her glanced behind her and saw the two girls waiting there patiently. "Ahh, come."

They hesitated at the moment, but they did as they were asked. Vicky stepped towards him first, followed by Kelly.

"Nice of you to join us at such... difficult times." Hao said, looking at Domino who had wondered away from them to secretly cry. "I'm so sorry you had to wait for so long, I had to deal with a few traitors." Kelly glared at him. He didn't look very sorry.

"It's cool." Vicky blurted out stupidly. She virtually slapped herself, it suddenly didn't feel so cold anymore. Her palms were quite wet and she could feel the beads of sweat forming on her forehead.

"Why did you kill them?" Kelly asked. Hao turned to her, looking at her with his dark glistening eyes.

"There is someone out there, greater than I. They were planning to take their side and finish me, but I found out before they could take action." He explained.

"Who?"

"My twin brother."

A thought zoomed into Vicky's mind like a lightening bolt from the sky. _Surely it couldn't be Yoh? He seems so nice and welcoming. _She then looked at Hao, his so called warm smile forming on his face as he continued to tell the story. _Looks can be decieveing..._

"They were girls that I killed, perhaps a little older than you." Hao told them, not really making things sound any better. He certainly wasn't the type to bluff.

"I want you to understand, that the little misunderstanding we had the other day wasn't personal, it's just my persuation technique. I really do think you two girls are very powerful, it may be enough to defeat my brother, once and for all." He continued.

"What's in it for us?" Kelly asked, Hao chuckled a little.

"I like you, you have a lot of spirit."

"You drag us out here, when we're on a journey to the tournament and you expect us to just work for you, free of charge?"

"I'll make you both Shaman Queen's. You can live the life you've always dreamed." Hao told them, walking back to the flame and moving his hand around it.

"Both of us? Can you even do that?" Vicky asked him, blinking.

"Once my brother has vanished from the space of the earth, I can do whatever I please."

Kelly looked at Vicky, helplessly. They both had such rough pasts, it was hard to think of a reason why they should say no. On the other hand, what if he didn't keep his promise? There was so many questions that needed to be answered, but they didn't want to rise his temper again. Vicky nodded at Kelly. They needed to think positive. They may have gotten off to a bumpy start with Hao, but what if this wasn't all that bad? He didn't seem evil, just a person who wanted to get rid of his evil twin.  
><em><br>I've been wrong before..._A thought drifted around in Vicky's head.

Hao's face formed into a smile as they agreed to join the cult. This smile was different. He blew the flame out, signalling that it was time to rest for the night.

Domino appeared from the shadows, her eyes red and puffy, they narrowed at the two girls who stood before her. She watched as they unpacked their things, but they didn't have anything to sleep on. It was obvious that they had been expecting to find an inn during their journey. Domino looked over and saw the unused sleeping bags that the deceased girls had slept in before. Her face screwed up, trying hard not to burst into tears in front of them.

"Here." She said, tossing the sleeping bags right at them.

"Thanks..." Vicky muttered.

"Whatever." Domino snapped, getting into her own sleeping back and turning her back on them.

"What a moody bi-"

"Hey, you'd feel like that if you lost someone close to you." Kelly interrupted her, keeping her voice ever so low. She shuffled into her sleeping bag.

"She was moody before she found out about that." Vicky pointed out, sitting down on her bag, hugging her legs and placing her head on her knees.

"True."

"What the hell are we doing?" Vicky asked, sighing.

"I don't even know. I'm scared of him, Vick." Kelly's eyes spotted Hao sitting on a higher cliff next to the cliff they were lying on.

"He seems alright, just a bit... mysterious."

"We don't know anything about him."

"Let's just get some sleep, maybe we'll feel better about it in the morning. At least it isn't so cold now." Vicky told her, slipping into her own sleeping bag. Kelly said goodnight and turned over. Vicky lay on her back, looking up into the pitch black darkness covered in twinkling balls of gas. Her eyes wouldn't close. Even though she was so exhausted, all she could think about was what would happen in the morning. She looked over at Kelly who was breathing deeply now, not sure if she had fallen asleep or not.

* * *

><p>A ray of bright light shined in Vicky's eyes, causing her to flutter them open. Blinded, she rose up out of her sleeping bag and onto her feet, rubbing her eyes. She walked over to the edge of the cliff and breathed out, in awe at the sunrise. It was beautiful.<p>

When she finally drew herself away from the sight, she turned back to wake Kelly, but she wasn't in her bed. She must of woken up hours ago.  
>The red head quickly grabbed her jacket and set off to find them. She didn't have to look far, as she came to a halt just as she ran round the corner. Hao, Kelly, Domino and a few other people were stood in a circle. All eyes were on her.<p>

Vicky sweatdropped, "Uhm, sorry..." She slowly walked over to them and stood inbetween Kelly and someone else.

"Why didn't you wake me up?" Vicky hissed in Kelly's ear, elbowing her in the side.

"I did try, but you were in a really deep sleep." Kelly admitted.

"Weird." Vicky muttered, frowning. "So what's going on?"

"It's an initiation. We have to have a branded mark on our necks."

"Sounds devine." Vicky mumbled.

"I'm glad we're all here." Hao said loudly, his eyes flashing at Vicky then back to everyone else. "We are gathered here to witness-"

"Who's getting married?" Vicky muttered, smirking. Kelly giggled silently into her hand.

"-The initiation of our two new Shamans." Hao finished. He raised his hand and made a gesture for Kelly to come over. Vicky squeezed her hand before she walked up to Hao, her face very pale. Hao reached out a hand and slowly drew Kelly's hair from her head. He placed his two fingers on her neck and closed his eyes. A small tiny whimper came from Kelly's mouth as a flash of light suddenly shone from his fingers. A few seconds on, Hao lifted his hand. Vicky gulped as she noticed blood on it.

"Welcome, Kelly." Hao said, breaking the silence. Kelly bowed, making her hair fall in front of her. A red, raw pattern was sticking out on her neck. It was something in Japanese.

Kelly walked back to were she was standing orginally, daring not to rub her sore neck in case Hao thought she was weak. She was already hoping that Hao didn't hear her whimper in pain.

"You okay?" Vicky asked, noticing her eyes were glistening. Kelly fought back the tears and smiled at her.

"Sure. It was nothing." She reasurred. Vicky wasn't convinced, her head tilting down and staring at her boots before she heard Hao call,

"Come, Vicky."

Vicky exhaled and with wobbly legs, she walked towards her soon to be new leader. There was no need to moved Vicky's already short hair, so he just lifted his fingers and the same flash of light appeared. She bit her lip. It really was the most painful thing she had ever experienced. He made a deep cut, so no wonder there was blood. Aside from the burning pain, it wasn't that bad.

"Welcome, Vicky. Both of you. This marking represents that from now on, you belong to me. Think of it as a signed contract, it can't be broken. I know you're not Japanese, so I will explain. It is my name." Hao told them, as Vicky joined Kelly again. They both glanced at each other from the corners of their eyes.

"You are the strongest Shaman here." Hao spoke. There was a few shocked and disappointed mumbles coming from the other Shaman's in the circle. Domino kept her mouth shut. "So..." Hao continued, glaring, so he had silence once again, "I will put you on your first mission, when you are fully trained and ready, of course."

Domino stepped forward, her fists clenched and her face frowning with rage. "No!"

"Something wrong, Dolly?"

Domino flinched at the name. "I...I don't think they are to be trusted. They're just kids for christ sake! Let me do it, please."

"No."

"But-"

Hao charged forward and slapped Domino right across the face, making her tumbling backwards onto the dirt. She lay there, face buried under her hair, too humiliated to get up.

"I've grown tired of your disbelief." Hao spat, not even looking at her.

The whole atmosphere left Vicky feeling incredibly awkward, she even felt a little bit sorry for Domino. She wanted to offer her a hand up, but she stayed in her place. She didn't fancy getting slapped either.

"...When will the training begin?" Kelly piped up, trying to change the subject. The idea worked, Hao's angry expression changed into a calm one.

"Ah, yes..."


	3. The Mission

11 months had passed. Some would say that it had gone completely slow, others would say otherwise. Vicky stood alone amongst the cliffs, staring down at her best friend training. It seemed like only yesterday that they had both joined their master. The year had flown by so fast, they barely had a chance to blink. The training was so difficult at the start of it all, it was hard to believe how easily it had gotten over time. It was certainly the hardest thing they had ever endured... so far. A huge, red mallet with spikes on each end clung from a brown strap around her like a shoulder bag. Luna, her guardian ghost had given it to her when she began training with Hao. It was only a month to go before they could join the tournament, but Hao had a mission for them. Vicky breathed out and closed her eyes. The warm Spring breeze danced upon her face. They were finally ready.

Kelly stopped what she was doing, totally breathless. She raised a hand and wiped the sweat off her brow, whilst her other hand held onto a dagger which had a wavy blade jagged blade on the one side, and a decorated silver handle with a gem in a sphere shape at the top in a demon claw. Her spirit guardian floated beside her, looking a little worn too, despite being a ghost. It was a young boy, just slightly taller than her. He had jet black hair, half was in a long plait held together by a rope with knifes on, while the other half was short. He had sapphire eyes and had an Angel and Demon wing. He wore gloves, and bandages were up both his arms and around his stomach, he had armor on his chest, and a large amulet hung round his neck detailed with rare stones. He had baggy trousers with a piece of fabric wrapped round the top and knifes slotted in the bottom half of each leg at the front with chains above and below them, pockets at the back, and shoes with spikes following round the sole.

"Good job, Tek." Kelly said, smiling up at him, he winked at her and grinned back.

"Hey dude!" Vicky called down from the top of the cliff. Kelly looked up, waving. Vicky sighed, rolling her eyes at her not getting the hint, "Come on! We have a meeting with Hao soon."

"I'll be up in a sec!" Kelly called back, still a little breathless from the hardcore training session. She tucked her dagger inside the little case she had clipped onto her belt, then set off to the meeting place where the others were surely waiting.

* * *

><p>"Where exactly are we gonna start?" Vicky mumbled, hands on her hips and standing next to Kelly. The two girls stood what seemed like the middle of nowhere, they were lost already. It had only been a couple of hours since they were told their mission.<p>

"Well, Hao told us that they're still around here, well, up west..." Kelly told her, looking in the general direction. All they could see was the long winding path that they should of taken months ago. Vicky felt a strong sense of deja vu.

"Let's just carry on from where we left off last time." Vicky suggested, thinking back to the time where they were lost, scared and cold. Two out of three wasn't bad.

* * *

><p>"Can we stop here? My legs are killing me." Vicky whined, spotting the nearest cafe they were walking up to. They had finally reached the closest village, not even sure if they were going the right way but not really caring due to the blisters on their feet.<p>

"Sounds like a good idea to me." Kelly replied, looking as though she was about to collapse. They headed inside, ordered their drinks and chose seats with a table. They both flopped down, exhausted.

"Look at us, we only walked a few miles and we're dead already. It's like we never trained our butts off." Vicky gasped, taking a long gulp of pepsi after she spoke.

"Must be just the heat."

"I'm gonna get another drink," Vicky said, swigging down the last drop of liquid she could find in the glass. "Want one?"

"Sure." Kelly answered.

Vicky got up and made her way towards the counter. Just as she reached it, something caught the corner of her eye, or rather, someone. A blue, spikey headed boy came through the door. Vicky stopped in her tracks. Where had she seen him before?

He walked over to the counter, not realising that her eyes were on him.

"Hi." Vicky said loudly without thinking.

Horo looked at her, "Err, me?"

Vicky nodded nervously.

"Sorry, haha, I wasn't sure. Normally girls don't really talk to me, none as pretty as you anyway..." He rambled rambled, blushing slightly. This made Vicky go extremely red and speechless. _God! Get a grip. _She thought to herself, getting irritated.

"I remember you... I swear you were one of the girls who were lost back at those two dirt paths a while ago. A long while ago actually. You gave me a weird look."

Vicky blinked at him, suprised that he actually remembered her. She had changed quite a bit since then. Her hair was to her shoulders now, and the red had faded back to dark brown: her natural color. This meant that their mission was going well. It was a step closer to Yoh.

"Ahh man, I'm sorry... I sound like such a stalker." The blue haired boy said, scratching his head and smiling hesitantly.

Vicky shook her head, "No, no, it's fine. I'm flattered."

"Hey, what's your name?"

"It's... it's Vicky." Vicky replied, "Yours?"

"Horohoro, but call me Horo for short if you want. So, are you on your own?" Horo asked, curiously.

"My best friend's over there, you remember her?" Vicky answered, nodding her head over to where Kelly was sitting. Kelly glared at her, mouthing to her what she was doing.

"Oh yeah!" The boy said, waving at Kelly who waved back awkwardly.

"Come on." Vicky told him, grabbing the chance to lure him over. "This is Kelly, Kelly this is Horo." Vicky introduced.

"Nice to meet you." Horo said happily, sitting down next to Vicky.

"Likewise." Kelly muttered, a little confused as to what was going on.

"You remember Horo?" Vicky asked, breaking the awkward silence. Kelly nodded, not knowing what else to bring to the conversation.

"You guy's have a place to stay?" Horo asked randomly. Kelly and Vicky looked at each other.

Kelly cleared her throat, "We do-"

"We don't." Vicky snapped, pulling a face at Kelly without Horo seeing.

"Where have you been staying since I last saw you?"

"Oh, you know..." Vicky drifted off.

Horo looked puzzled, "You've been sleeping outside?" Vicky nodded quickly. It was technically true, they _had _been sleeping outside.

"Why don't you come with me? Me and my friends have a house rented until the tournament starts. It'd be great if you could, I'm sure they wouldn't mind. Anna isn't around which is a good thing." Horo explained.

"Anna being the chick who wouldn't let us come along in the first place?" Kelly asked.

"Yeah... sorry about that. So what d'ya say?" Horo asked, looking at Vicky to Kelly.

"I don't know, I mean-"

"-I'm gonna head off now, so I'll leave you to think about it. We're at the Blossom Tree Lake house if you decide to come along." Horo told them, getting up.

"Right, okay cool. We really appreciate the offer." Vicky said, hugging him. Horo blushed intensely.

"S-sure, it's cool. Catch you later dudes! Err, I mean dudettes." Horo said, winking. Vicky stared after him until he was out of sight. As soon as he was out of earshot, Kelly shot up with an angry look on her face.

"What the hell was that?"

"What?"

"All the flirting and stuff, we're meant to be on a mission and you're picking up guys like it's a normal fricking day!" Kelly hissed, waving her arms about. A few people in the cafe started to stare a little at the scene.

"I'm not picking anyone up! I'm doing the mission, Miss-I'll-just-sit-here-on-my-own-and-not-do-anything. He's Yoh's _friend_!"

"Who you totally want to go out with." Kelly snapped, folding her arms.

"Jeez, I talk to one guy since we've been away and I'm suddenly in the spotlight."

"Alright, alright, I'm sorry. I'm just freaking out, that's all. I want to get this right." Kelly sighed.

"Look, just leave it to me. We'll stay at their house, get to know them all, pretend we're all friends and then get to Yoh. That's what Hao sent us out here to do. That's the mission and we're not gonna fail. Capache?" Vicky told her, standing up and holding out her hand for Kelly to take. Kelly huffed and took it, getting up herself.

"Let's not get attached to them."

"Trust me, we won't have a chance to." Vicky said, smiling at her.

* * *

><p>"Where have you been? Where's my milk, I've been waiting ages." A purple, pointed headed Chinese boy demanded, his legs crossed sitting on a red vintage armchair. Horo had entered the spacious living room, carrying a bag of snacks and drinks for everyone.<p>

"Chill out, dude, here." Horo chucked the carton of milk at him.

"This isn't even cold!"

"My bad, I met a couple of chicks in the cafe."

"Were they old women? I doubt any girls your age would even look at you twice." Ren said coldly.

"They were my age actually! Man, she was beautiful." Horo said, drifting off into his own little world about Vicky.

Ren rolled his eyes and opened up the carton of milk, taking small sips.

"I asked them if they could stay here."

Milk almost came out of Ren's nose, "YOU DID WHAT?"

"Dude, they're sleeping out in the streets!" Horo told him.

"I don't care if they are or not, you can't just let people walk in here, you don't know who to trust these days." Ren snarled, knowing quite a bit about trust himself.

"They were harmless girls, how bad could they be? The little one looked more your type, Renny." Horo teased, scoffing down the noodles he bought just.

Ren threw a cushion at him, "Baka."

"Come on, Ren! You'll warm up to them."

"This is MY house. I paid for it. I say who stays and who goes, got it?"

"But, Reeeeen-"

"-While Anna is training Yoh back in Japan, we can't have anyone else here. I must of been bad in another life to get stuck with you." Ren snapped, drinking the last of his milk and placing a hand on his forehead.

"Well we're not completely on our own, Ryu, Manta and Lyserg are here. Plus Pirika is coming soon." Horo pointed out.

"Yippee." Ren said sarcastically, "I don't even know where everyone else is... are they still in bed?"

"Ryu is, Lyserg is out somewhere training and Manta... err... not sure where he is." Horo rambled, Ren not even listening.

"Ren, come on! It's only two girls-"

"No." Ren hissed, slamming his fists down on the arms of the chair. That was his final word.

* * *

><p>A small black cat walked around the Blossom Tree Lake house, sniffing the air. This wasn't a normal cat, as it started to float in mid air trying to get a good view. It had medium sized feathery angel wings, bright emerald green eyes and a light cream creasant moon marking on it's forehead. It flew swiftly over to one of the windows and squinted. Vicky and Kelly stood nearby outside the gate.<p>

"Anyone in, Luna?" Vicky asked the cat as it flew back towards them.

Luna nodded, "Two boys." Her accent was old english.

"Right, let's go." Vicky said.

"Wait." Kelly spoke.

"What is it now?"

"I don't know about this."

"It'll be fine, come on, we could do with a little break anyway." Vicky reasurred her, Kelly didn't look convinced.

"What if Hao finds out?"

"We'll just explain to him that it's all part of the plan, which it is. Sorta."

"Sorta?"

"Well...

"You're not thinking of that Horo dude again are you?" Kelly asked her with a troubled look.

"Who said anything about him?" Vicky questioned, raising an eyebrow. "Can we just stop dancing around and go in? Just chill."

"Fine, but if anything goes wrong I'm blaming you."

"Nothing will go wrong, now come on." Vicky hissed, grabbing Kelly by the arm and pulling her towards the door. She tapped it three times in a silly tune. They waited. Kelly started to fidget after 5 minutes of standing there.

"They're not answering." Kelly spotted.

"Well done." Vicky banged it this time.

A pair of narrowed yellow eyes peeped out through the door, followed by a pointed hairdo.

"What do you want?" Ren asked, annoyance in his speech.

"Uhm..." Vicky mumbled.

"Who is it?" Asked a voice behind Ren.

"Nobody you hedgehog. GET OFF M-" Ren got pushed aside by Horo, who smiled when he saw them.

"Hey! I knew you'd show up. Come in-"

"NO! FOR HEAVENS SAKE!"

"Stop being a spoilt sport, Ren. Sorry about this, one sec-" Horo closed the door on them. They both exchanged confused looks, whilst there was a load of noise coming from behind the door.

"I DON'T WANT GIRLS IN THIS HOUSE DAMN IT! BAKA! BAKA! BAKA!"

"Let's just go in." Vicky said impatiently, walking through as if it was her own house. Kelly sighed. There was no point in even complaining anymore, nothing could stop her. She followed her best friend into the house. They both came to a halt when they saw Horo and Ren arguing in the middle of the living room.

"HEDGEHOG!"

"POINTY HEADED FREAK!"

"HI!" Vicky yelled.

Everything went silent. They span round faster than anything, Ren looked like he was going to explode with anger. Horo beamed with delight.

"I'm sorry we burst in, Vicky has no manners." Kelly piped up. She was looking at Ren, who had no interest whatsoever in their stories. He gave them one last, cold look, then stormed off upstairs. A few seconds after, there was a loud slam of a door. Kelly looked down sadly at her feet.

"He hates us."

"He doesn't hate you... he just doesn't know you yet. It takes him a while." Horo explained.

"He seems like an arsehole." Vicky said truefully.

"He kinda is," Horo agreed, letting out a laugh.

Kelly looked up at the stairs where Ren had wandered off.

"Everything alright?" Vicky whispered, whilst Horo went into the kitchen to make them drinks.

Kelly nodded, still looking a little sad, "I feel sorry for him."

"Who, Mr. Pointy? I'm sure he can take care of himself."

Before Kelly could dignify Vicky's comment with a response, Horo had come back with their drinks.

"Thanks for this Horo, you're a star." Vicky said happily, hugging him again. Kelly rolled her eyes, but she smiled all the same. Horo blushed like crazy again, hugging her back.

"It's only a couple of drinks." Horo said, puzzled, putting the drinks on the table.

Vicky giggled, "I mean letting us stay."

"OH, oh, yeah, that's fine. You can stay as long as you like."

"Ren won't mind?" Kelly asked, twiddling her thumbs.

"Who's Ren?" Vicky asked, taking a swig of her drink.

"The angry little dude." Horo replied.

"Ah."

"He'll get used to it." Horo told them, grinning.


	4. Fatal Flaw

A young, green haired boy with matching green eyes came through the door of the Cherry Tree Lake house. He sensed someone new in the house. He knew just who it was before he even saw her.

"Vicky?" He asked, entering the living room. His eyes fell on the brunette.

"Lyserg!" She yelped, getting up and hugging him tightly.

"Ahh-death-hug!" He cried, gasping for air.

"Sorry, Ly."

"You guys know each other?" Horo asked, with his usual confused expression.

"We're cousins!" Vicky announced happily. Kelly glared at the green haired boy from across the room, she wasn't a big fan of Lyserg.

"Hey Kelly." Lyserg beamed.

"Hi." Kelly retorted in a small voice.

"Wow, small world." Horo said.

* * *

><p>"What are you doing here? Not that I'm not happy to see you, it's just... I'm surprised." Lyserg asked, as himself, Vicky, Kelly and Horo sat in the living room.<p>

"Err... we're here for the tournament, like everyone else." Vicky replied, faking a smile. It was half true.

"Of course, how silly of me. I totally forgot." Lyserg said, shaking his head shamefully.

"I did used to go on about for ages to you when we were kids." Vicky smiled.

"That's right! My memories a little blurred from childhood..."

Vicky looked at him sadly. He was such a strong person inside, even though he always put himself down a lot. His parents were murdered when he was little, her aunt and uncle. When they weren't around, she was all that he had at that time. He never told her who did it, and it wasn't like he didn't know who it was because he witnessed it. It was strange. Lyserg told her everything.

"Right, well, anyone want sake?" Horo asked, changing the subject before an awkward silence settled in.

"If you're offering." Vicky said, who was never the kind of girl to refuse alcohol.

"Uhm, sure." Kelly shrugged.

Lyserg shook his head.

There was a loud creak on the staircase. Kelly looked up and saw Ren coming down the stairs, scowling.

"Are you ever gonna talk?" Vicky asked him when she saw him.

Ren shot a dirty look in her direction, "Why should I talk to you?"

"Because it's polite?"

"Is it polite to go walking into someones house uninvited?" Ren snapped.

"We were invited. Horo invited us." Kelly pointed out quietly.

"This isn't his house." Ren said, getting annoyed again.

"So what? We're here now and we aren't going anywhere so get over it, jeez." Vicky told him, rolling her eyes.

"How about you shut up."

"Hey!" Horo said, peeping his head out of the kitchen door, "Watch it Ren. What's gotten into you lately?"

"I could sense it. As soon as they entered." Ren said. Vicky's heart almost stopped. _What could he sense?_

"What are you talking about, Ren?" Horo asked, his eyebrows raised.

"They're not to be trusted."

"Now hold on a minute-" Vicky began, but Ren stopped her.

"Your furioku level is extremely high for just a couple of girls. I don't trust you."

"And? Ren, just listen to yourself." Horo sighed.

"We've trained all year, I'm glad our furioku is above average to be honest. That's what we aimed for." Kelly said cooly. Ren fell silent, not knowing what to say back.

"See? They're fine." Horo said, "Stop getting all jealous!"

"I'm not jealous, I can beat them to a pulp in 10 seconds." Ren hissed.

"I doubt it." Vicky muttered.

"You want to fight me?"

"Not really."

"Coward."

"Nope. I just know that it'll be a waste of my energy." Vicky answered, admiring her finger nails.

"Can we stop with the bickering? Ren give it a rest." Horo butted in, poking Ren in the ribs which made him squirm and forget what he wanted to say back to her. "This is Vicky and Kelly anyway, Vicky and Kelly, Ren." Horo added. Ren grunted a little "Hello" to them and they nodded.

"I hope you know that you'll have to leave when our friends come back." Ren told them, folding his arms.

"I'm sure Yoh will persuade Anna to let them, he was the one who wanted them to stay originally when we first met them!" Horo said, smiling.

"Where are they exactly?" Vicky asked.

"Japan."

Vicky stared at him. Something in her mind had clicked. How on earth are they going to get to Yoh when he was in Japan? They had barely enough money between them to travel there at the moment.

"When will they be back?" Kelly asked anxiously, obviously having the same thoughts.

Ren raised an eyebrow, "What's with the questions?"

"Nothing!" Kelly squeaked.

"They won't be back until we meet them at the tournament." Horo explained.

"We'll be back in a sec." Vicky told them, laughing nervously and grabbing Kelly outside, leaving the boys looking dazed.

* * *

><p>"I know this looks bad-"<p>

"Looks bad? Looks bad? It's a disaster!" Kelly cried, her head in her hands.

"We can just chill here for a bit until we get the chance." Vicky suggested, unsure.

"What if Hao decides to check up on us?"

"He won't find us, Kelly."

"He has ways!"

"Look, it'll be fi-"

"-You keep saying that!" Kelly said frantically.

"Because it will! Hao never said how long we had to be." Vicky pointed out.

"I think he would rather have it done asap instead of next year." Kelly snapped.

"We'll just have to make something up, alright?" Vicky said calmly, "If he comes looking, he'll come looking. It's better we do this instead of turning up in front of him with nothing."

"I guess you're right." Kelly sighed, relaxing a little, then added, "Jeez Vick, you're so fearless at times."

Vicky shrugged, a little embarrassed at the comment.

"Modest too. Sometimes I think..." Kelly trailed off, looking out into the town.

"What?"

"...Sometimes I think that you could have a chance at winning the tournament."

"You're kidding me?" Vicky asked, blinking with surprisement.

"What would you want, I mean, if you ever became Shaman Queen?"

For once, Vicky didn't know the answer. What did she want? She never really gave it a chance to think about. They were both so busy with training and aiming to please Hao with their best effort, that she had never really had enough time alone to let the thought cross her mind.

"No idea."

"That's inventive." Kelly said, grinning at her blunt answer.

"Well Miss creative, what would you wish for if you won?" Vicky asked her.

"Uhm... well..."

"Hmm?"

"Hold that thought." Kelly replied, looking behind Vicky. Vicky raised an eyebrow and turned round. There were not alone. Lyserg stood at the doorway, looking at them with curious eyes.

"Why're you out here?" He asked, taking a few steps forward.

"Kelly felt sick, she needed some fresh air." Vicky blurted out quickly, Kelly rolled her eyes and nodded, going along with it.

"Yep. All better now." She mumbled, giving them a strong yet fake smile.

"How long have you been standing there?" Vicky asked, swallowing nervously.

"Long enough." Lyserg answered with a straight face. He then gave her his usual smile, making Vicky's heartbeat slow down.

"Come on," He said, "We're gonna watch a movie if you care to join us." Vicky and Kelly nodded in unison, and with that, they headed inside.

Watching nearby, a sillouette stood at the top of the pathway leading towards the house.


	5. The Mysterious Stranger

Nightfall, the average time for grown men to get away from their families and responsibilities or take a break after a long days work and head over to the most popular tavern in the village. It was rather crowded tonight, probably because it was the weekend, so of course there were going to be men who needed a good break and a good alcoholic berverage flowing in. Some were in groups, laughing and sharing their womanising jokes to each other. Others were drinking away their sorrows in the corners of the pub. Some were just simply out to have a good time, hoping to find a fine mistress to take home with them, whatever their age.

There was one male in particular, indeed on his own, but he was standing opposite to the building, looking in from the outside. His reason was unknown, yet it was obvious that he wasn't from around here. He was young, in his teenage years, with floppy black hair and eyes the color of the ocean. He wore a trench like brown coat, a long, tatty looking black scarf wrapped around his neck, black fingerless groves and black boots. His pale skin stuck out in the night, almost as if the moon was reflecting off his body.

"Pathetic," he whispered, his deep blue eyes glaring at the drunken people.

A bearded old man was trying to pull a woman away into the dark, clearly trying to seduce her. She was laughing hyserically, twirling around his arm like a ballerina, clearly so under the influence that she was out of her mind for even looking at the disgusting pervert. She was looking at him like he was a handsome prince. I guess that's what countless amounts of drink does to your vision. For a split second, he wondered whether to rescue the woman, but he knew it was pointless. Saving someone who doesn't want to be saved. Yet needing to be saved was a different matter. _No, it was her own fault, she got into that state. Looks like shes in for a romantic evening_, the young boy thought sarcastically, containing the urge to laugh. It suprised him a little, he hadn't smiled in a long time, let alone laughed. Even his euthanistic jokes weren't enough to keep himself merry. His almost smile turned into a frown.

He flicked his messy black hair away from his face and began walking away, not being able to bare another second of the sight. He didn't even know why he stood there for so long, it was so rowdy. He hated places like that. Solitude comfindment was the best in his opinion. Being alone. _Friends and lovers? _Both were meaningless to him. _Not even ememies are worth my time._

The boy continued walking, towards were he stopped yesterday. He stopped in his tracks and looked up at the sign._ 'Cherry Tree Lake House.' _The place interested him, he wasn't entirely sure why. Perhaps it was the amusing sight of the two girls having a debate at the porch yesterday. One of them reminded him of someone, someone he knew to be dead. She seemed strong, willing, independant, everything that _she_was. He shook his head of the dreaded thoughts, before he started to think of the memories he threw at the back of his mind to keep him from going down the wrong road again. The past is the past, there was no going back.

He stepped forward into the front garden, _I'm sure the residants won't mind if I sleep here until dawn, and if they do, then I'll get to that later... _he thought, as he did a run and jump over the fence. He landed with a bump, gambowling into the grass. He stayed face down on the grass, silent and spread out into a star, hoping that he wasn't too loud. After a minute of no lights being turned on or the back door springing open, he assumed he was in the clear. Wrapping his trench coat around him, he found a good spot to camp and curl up, finally looking forward to a decent-ish nights sleep.

* * *

><p>"So... like this?" Vicky asked, swinging her huge red mallet around, trying to hit the target. Luna floated near by, watching intently at her master. The cat had made her wake up at the crack of dawn to start on serious training, but working with someone so clumsy wasn't going to be a walk in the park. Luna face palmed when Vicky missed the target completely.<p>

The Shaman huffed with annoyance, "it's this stupid thing!" She said, kicking the object. The target looked like a deranged scarecrow, it's head drooped miserablely. Why she had to train with this, she didn't know. It was Luna's failed attempted to make it look like an enemy, made out of a couple of sacks filled with feathers for its body, a broken broom for its arms and Luna even drew on an evil face making it look even more stupid. Vicky said nothing about it, knowing that Luna would be annoyed with her even more if she'd said anything about her 'masterpiece.'

"No, your balance needs work! You have to get used to the mallet. If you train hard enough, it'll be as light as a feather in no time," Luna reasurred her, rubbing her temples.

"I need a break."

"We've only just started!" Luna hissed, zooming in front of Vicky before she could go anywhere. She raised a hand and waved her away as if she was a pesky fly.

"Fine, 5 minutes," Luna muttered, flying off angrilly.

"Phew, finally," Vicky sighed, dropping onto the grass in a star shape. It was a nice day, the clouds were extra fluffy in the bright blue sky and the breeze was warm. It was just how Vicky liked it, even though snow was her favorite. She remembered the time when Kelly and herself had last made a snowman, it seemed so long ago, such a distant memory. She was beginning to think whether it was perhaps a dream, since it had been so long the last time she had a really enjoyed herself. Hao was probably wondering where they both were, she dreaded the thought of him finding them. Their mission was still incomplete...

A yawn and a rustle in the bushes made her jump, distrupting her many thoughts. Quickly getting up on her feet, she started to creep towards where she had heard the sounds. She peered and saw a figured lying in the dirt. _An animal?_ She thought, _no... too big. _

She crept closer. _It was a vagrant. It had to be_. The person stirred again, revealing his face behind the coat he had over it.

"OH!" Vicky cried, without thinking, slapping her hand over her mouth. The boy of course woke up and sat upright, looking at her, blinking. His black hair was messier than ever, sticking up in random places.

"S-sorry... didn't mean to wake you-WAIT, WHY AM I SAYING SORRY? YOU'RE SLEEPING IN MY GARDEN!" Vicky yelled, waving her arms about madly.

"Hey, can you keep it down? It wasn't exactly a greats nights sleep," the guy said, yawning and stretching.

"Right. So why are you-are you homeless?" Vicky asked. Yelling like that was sure to wake everyone up, she imagined Ren being furious and demanding a fight with the stranger as soon as he saw him. Nobody had come out of the house so far. The chances of Horo waking up especially would be highly unlikely, he could sleep his way through world war III if he had the chance. Kelly wouldn't get out of her nice warm bed even if the house was burning down. Vicky wasn't so sure about Ren though, she was positive he was a light sleeper.

"Not really, just needed somewhere to crash. I didn't mean to get caught really, I just wanted to sleep and run."

"I guess... it's alright. It's not really my house, I'm just staying here for a while... you just scared me, that's all," Vicky admitted, almost completely calm now. She didn't even know this person, yet she already felt so comfortable with him. Perhaps it was his ocean blue eyes that calmed her ever so quickly.

"I didn't mean to scare you, I'm sorry."

"It's fine. My names Vicky," she said bluntly.

"You're a Shaman?" He asked, brushing himself down and getting up.

"How did you know?" Vicky replied, a little suprised. She always thought she looked less like a Shaman than anything. On the other hand, she noticed he never gave her his own name, which was fair enough. Maybe she didn't get the memo, but she immidiately regretted giving him her name so soon.

"I may of looked like I was asleep, but I was watching you train."

Vicky blushed, "little creepy."

Kien laughed, "yeah, it does sound weird. You're good though, even though you messed up a little at the end."

"Thanks. Why don't you come in?" Vicky asked him, watching him put on his backpack. She felt a pang of guilt, knowing that he was sleeping out in the cold. He seemed like a nice guy.

"Thanks, but no thanks. I should be going."

"Really? You don't want breakfast?"

"That's very kind of you, but lets face it, we don't know each other. I was hoping to avoid comfortation, I know now not to make the same mistake as I did when I jumped over your fence and made myself comfy. I could be anyone, and you're inviting me into your home." Kien said.

"You've made your point, I was just being nice," Vicky mumbled, feeling a little hurt at his response. Kien put a hand on her shoulder and smiled.

"I know, I'm grateful for that. I just avoid people, it's nothing personal. I'm sure we'll meet again, perhaps in at the tournament?"

Vicky nodded, smiling back.

"You can count on that."

"Cool. Well, cya around... Vicky," Kien waved, then ran and jumped over the fence, out of sight.

Vicky stood there for a moment. _Did that just happen? _


End file.
